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I have a 14 year old and a flight of stairs in my house. The stairs are very steep and my daughter is very helpful. In this way I have been able to go through entire days without even stepping foot upstairs until at least the bedtime shuffle rolls around. Then there is no avoiding it. Because none of my boys like to go to bed I find I end up running up and down those stinking steps about 7 times during the bedtime hours.

Last night I got to thinking about those trips up and down the steps. It’s a nice little burst of movement after a day typically spent writing/schooling/chaffeuring (read: sitting down.) Your situation might differ from mine but since I’m home all day with all of my kids I can’t get out to the gym or even to grab a run as often as I’d like. I CAN make time for it. I just DON’T.

The number one problem we face these days in keeping fit is moving enough. A great percentage of us drive everywhere, order in groceries and shopping and dinners, live on a single level or use our stair masters and treadmills to hang our laundry. For normal people who don’t already have a penchant for daily dedicated exercise routines it is VITAL that we move.

Every

Single

Day

One great idea is to pick up a pedometer and see where you’re starting. Are you moving already and just don’t realize it? Don’t automatically put yourself in my category of “I don’t move enough” because you may be doing MORE than you think! Keep track this week of how you move, when you move and when you avoid moving. Can you take the steps instead of the elevator (or instead of asking your 14 year old?) Can you walk to the dry cleaner? Can you take three trips to carry in groceries and get your heart rate up a little? Exercise can be fun…aaaaaaand often it isn’t. Stop looking at the “go to the gym for an hour” idea as “working out.”

Your life is your workout. Pay attention to that. Do what you have to do.

{Do you have a suggestion for how you ‘get moving’ in your day? Share it!}

In real life she goes by the name of Leah Segedie and she’s a dynamo. I met her last year at Blissdom, a kind of shangrila for wild, passionate blogger types. I had intended to join the “writer” track at Blissdom. At one point last year the large group broke up into smaller groups for discussion, support, questions, interests. I made a bee line for the “writers” because, you know, I’m a writer. Before I got far I noticed the vibrant red-head dancing on a table and shouting, “Come over here! Come on! Fitness! Here!” She may have been singing too. I can’t be sure. I could not help but admire her enthusiasm and her vitality. I told you, she’s a dynamo. And so I gravitated to her table. I’m a writer but I’m also a personal trainer and a mind/body fitness class leader so when the vibe beckons, I follow. In this case, Bookieboo beckoned and I followed. She’s got that Pied Piper quality about her and it’s a good thing too because she leads men and women to healthy lives every single day through Mamavation. So check that out, eh?

This post isn’t really about Leah Segedie though. It’s about shame. I’m writing it because Bookieboo asked me to and I simply cannot tell that woman “no.” So here it is.

When I got the message from Leah asking me to help bring awareness to this I started crying, not because I was this kid but because my best friend was this kid and because throughout life women I have loved and continue to love deeply have been this kid and they’ve spoken about what it feels like to be this girl, how they were teased, how they were shamed by teachers and parents and nosy aunties and perfect strangers. Approaching the issue of obesity through the lens of shame, whether it’s shaming the parents or the child, is wrong. It is misguided at best and cruel at worst. These ads should be pulled but that is not enough in my estimation. We all need to be educated on how to love one another a whole lot better. We all need to know how to listen to this little girl, learn how to be safe people in the lives of someone who struggles with weight issues. We all, whether that is our struggle or not, need to take that big judgement making machine we carry around in our back pockets and smash it on the floor somewhere.

The only way that will begin to happen is if people speak it. A good way to begin is to speak out against these ads and ads like them. Stop the propagation of shame, end the culture of shame.

Want to take part and be a voice of care?? The internet makes it easy so you have no excuse. None

If you would like to voice your opinion you can do it directly AT The Strong 4Life Campaign. They just so happen to be on twitter and Facebook.

I’ve always been a person who pursues the healthy path unless I’m in the fast food drive thru, then all bets are off because as I see it if I’m getting fast food then I want the food that chain makes famous. I know it’s completely wrong but if I’m at McD’s I want french fries, not salad.

I’ve always been a person who pursues the healthy path unless I’m in the fast food drive thru, then all bets are off because as I see it if I’m getting fast food then I want the food that chain makes famous. I know it’s completely wrong but if I’m at McD’s I want french fries, not salad.

For years I’ve been trying to reconcile this and force myself to choose healthy options when I’m faced with unhealthy situations. At the same time I remember sitting with uber health nut friends at restaurants and feeling the pressure that came at ordering time. What I REALLY wanted was the Cream of Broccoli soup but what I ended up getting was the low fat/low salt/low taste option because I was having lunch with the uber health nut guru type, not that the uber health nut guru expected that of me.

I realized that this pressure to be “healthy” and to “choose well” hits me everywhere. At the same time the opposite message- “eat fast, eat greasy, take the easy way” is what is most available to me. I don’t mind working a little harder to live longer, feel better and be the best version of myself, I just don’t want to be obnoxious about it.

There has to be some middle ground here.

And so, I’m working on pointing out the middle ground as I encounter it. I’m a normal person, a middle of the road person. I’m not super fit but I’m healthy. I’m not a gym rat but I am a certified personal trainer. I’m not a vegan/vegetarian, I’m a delishatarian. I’ll choose the delicious as often as I’m able.

If that’s something that interests you then come along for the ride. Toss in your 2 cents as we go. We’ll all get rich.